From Reset to Ashes
by DeathhunterAshi
Summary: Nice Indie Band? Check. Good friends with a penchant for really stupid decisions? Also check. Getting hit by a truck and transported to another world? Wait, that doesn't sound right- (Remake of From Songs to Ashes)
1. Ashes 1: Arrival

(Reset Enabled: From Songs to Ashes)

(Delete File?)

(Yes)

(No)

(Start New Game+ ?)

(Yes)

(No)

(Start with Grade Bonuses?)

(Yes)

(No)

AA++Resetting...++AA

"MADISON SQUARE GARDEN, ARE YOU READY?!"

The screaming of all the people present, the sound of their hearts beat with the bass- ripping the pick across strings and yelling into the microphone. The stage felt like it was filled with electricity as the drums pounded like the roar of thunder, each lyric bringing out more and more energy from the audience.

"TAKE IT EASY! EVERYONE SING ALONG WITH ME NOW!"

With the ending strum of the guitar, the song was over and the audience shouted for more-for one more encore; instead the owner of the guitar grinned, pointing her finger up to the sky and nodding with as much excitement as the crowd themselves.

"Thank you Manhattan! We love you all and hope to see you again at our next concert!" And with that, the vocalist walked off the stage with her other members following in stead, muttering exuberantly over tour dates and whether their manager wouldn't blow a gasket over using the fog machine without authorization.

"Hey Strider! You up for a round at the local pub?"

"Nah man, you know its a weeknight- wanna add underage drinking to the list?"

"Hey, I suggested it, she didn't say squat yet." 'Strider' just raised an eyebrow and shook her head, still feeling good from the energy of the concert.

"Sorry, but I promised the boss that I wouldn't stay out all night this time. Catch you with something NON-Alcoholic next time?" The Drummer winced, rubbing the back of their head with a bashful expression.

"Anyway, be careful out there tonight, the traffic is crazier than Atlanta's right now." Tilting her head a little, she nodded and waved around her wallet.

"And that, my friends is why I learned parkour and take MTA."

"I thought you learned parkour in order to impress your boss." "That's a story for another time and you know it! Get your ass home before we get assaulted with text messages again!"

Snickering one last time, 'Strider' shut the clips of the guitar case and hefted it up- waving her hand as she retreated for the night. It would take a good few minutes to walk from Madison Square to 34th Street, especially with how cold its been for the past few weeks. Man, it was already January and it was still cold as balls. Though if it wasn't she would probably be a tad concerned.

"Kanarazu...bokura wa deau darou...Karma, huh. Wonder why that song of all openings popped up in my head of all days." Shaking her head, she went to cross the street that was uncomfortably barren for a busy street in Manhattan of all places.

And that was when she heard it. The loud blaring of a horn forced her to hurry and run to the other side, but it was too late- the feeling of her body being thrown over a truck was worse than anything felt before; the fall back to Earth felt a lot longer than what was expected for being in a Car Accident and never realized when she closed her eyes nor bit her tongue.

"Ah. Is this how all those Drama Stars felt in their respective series...?" The last thing that registered in her mind wasn't of the dark streets illuminated by lights, but of a blue sky with what looked like giant stones floating in the atmosphere.

AA++Resetting...++AA

"Man, its boring out here today." Such came from one Luke Fon Fabre, son of Duke Fabre as he laid lazily on the bench not far off from his own room. Call it messy if you will-he didn't care at the moment and really, REALLY wanted something to happen. Guy was busy helping around the manor and all his other 'training partners' went too easy on him on purpose. To be honest, ANYTHING happening whether it be good or bad would be welcomed- preferably good.

"Damn it, why couldn't Master Van come today? At least it'd make the day more interesting!" He huffed once more and got up from his admitably comfortable position and got ready to head back to his room to write in that stupid diary of his.

Looking up at the shining sun, the redhead squinted his eyes and couldn't help but to notice a black speck gaining more and more trajectory right in his direction. "What the hel-"Before he could finish though, that 'thing' slammed straight into Luke and sent them both flying into a tree.

"Owww..." Rubbing the back of his aching head, he glanced down at what was apparantly not junk or a painful arte coming his way, but a black-clad human wearing a scarf in what was considered the Summer Season in Kimlasca. Another thing he noticed was that there was a lot of blood coming from this person and staining his jacket.

"Wha-who-how?!" At this point he was more focused on how much blood was coming out and the sheer will that kept them alive when Guy came running over with his sword unsheathed.

"Luke! Are you alright?! I heard screaming coming from the courtyard!"

"Do I look okay?! I'm covered in someone's blood for crying out loud! Give me a hand!" Finally getting out of his head that Luke wasn't too badly injured, Guy helped to roll the person off of his friend and helped him up. What he saw nearly made him jump several feet in the air though- that person bleeding on the daises was a girl.

"L-Luke..." The redhead looked back at Guy with a troubled expression that quickly hardened into a angry facade.

"Guy, go get the guards and the healers and do it fast!" Not taking the hidden benefit for granted, he ran off in the direction of the Servant Quarters without a second thought.

AA++Resetting...++AA

Everything hurt. She could feel every single one of her bones shifting with unnecessary movement and wanted nothing more than to drift back into dreamland where pain didn't exist on a scale to 20 and there were cherries. But then the feeling of her stomach dropping brought up a rather rude reminder.

"Crap, shit, fuck, ow. Ow. Ow." Opening her eyes, 'Strider' scooted up in the bed and let out a breath. There goes the hard part.

"Well, the pain proves I'm not dead (again) but doesn't explain where I am. So before anything else happens, time to go through rollcall." Shaking her head and wincing, the redheaded vocalist sighed.

"Name. Aschlyn Luke Strider. Age. 1...5... No wait, 16. That day was my bithday. Favorite pastime? It was drawing. And the last thing I remember was getting hit by a truck and possibly getting an concussion. Speaking of which, I don't feel the effects of those at all- just my external wounds. Just what is going on?" Aschlyn muttered to herself while mussing through the mess of dark red hair and shaking her head. In the midst of her confusion, the sound of metal clanging and yelling from...Yuri Lowenthal(?) was coming closer and closer to the room when the door suddenly burst open with a group of soldiers; their armor lined with crimson and holding spears aplenty, she barely had enough time to react.

"Wha-" "Silence! You're under arrest for trespassing on Kimlascan Royalty ground and attempted murder on the Duke's son!"

'The Duke's son? Kimlascan? Kim...lasca...' When the peices fit together, there was only one thing Aschlyn Strider could say at this moment.

"Son of a bitch."

Xx-Determination-xX

Ashi: Well, hey everyone! Sorry its been a while since you heard anything from me, with what being busy from April all the way to July. But in leu of that, I bring you the remake I've been talking about for over a year-From Reset to Ashes! This is basically a full remake of From 'Songs to Ashes' but with added deleted scenes from 'Critical Abyss' and some added from the original series that Aschlyn is based from.

Man, when I read over the original that I made back in middle school, it even made ME cringe. Thankfully I can retcon a lot of the things that happened the 2012 version and not feel ashamed from it. Also, no songfic-related stuff. So there won't be walls of lyrics like I was infamous for doing. Some of the OCs featured won't be included for the sake of space and the initial retconning, so Alex won't be in this version. So...there may be a poll asking which OCs sans the antagonist OC and DanteShindo's Nathan will be removed from the plot alltogether.

So again, thanks for reading always and here is the disclaimer:

"The following is a fan-based fiction. Tales of the Abyss belongs to Bandai Namco, designs by Kosuke Fujishima and Motoi Sakuraba. Please support the offical release."


	2. Ashes 2: Trial

"Cold...this top does nothing to keep out the cold." Those were the first words that came out of one Aschlyn Strider's mouth as she tried to stretch out her body, only to become wracked with pain from the barely healed injuries. It didn't help that they chained up her hands and feet; with the jarring and utter discomfort, she could clearly say it wasn't a dream (much to her dismay).

"So. Somehow I ended up on Aludrant via bullshit magic or simply getting hit by a truck and ended up in Kimlasca. KIMLASCA of all places. Why couldn't be in Malkuth or hell- Keterburg?" Thinking it over, she shook her head. "Actually, the hypothermia and shock would kill me if I landed there- nevermind."

Looking around the dreary dungeon, Aschlyn couldn't help but to notice that there were unfamiliar sigils around the place, mostly on the bars and that was new. From the looks of it, it was a procedure to prevent Fonon users from breaking out before their trial or released early. It made sense, especially considering this was where Van was going to be held after Luke comes back from Malkuth...Though being here for an entirety of a month was not something she wanted to do at all, but it's not like she was going to suddenly spawn super strength. This was an alternate world based on a game, not an anime. Sighing and hanging her head, Aschlyn couldn't help but to notice something was missing- one very particular something.

"Son of a- they really took my hair clip?!" Now she was in a really rotten mood.

As the loud clanging of metal took to her attention, the red-haired prisoner glared at the White Knights banged their greaves against the cell door bars- their laughter echoing against the helmets shielding their faces.

"Wake up! Duke Fabre and the King wants to see you now." Opening the door and haphazardly unlocking the chains- the knight pushed her forward- eliciting a growl while going to her 'command'. As annoying as they were perpetually useless, they guided her up the stairs from the dungeon and into the audience room.

Much to her shock, Kimlasca Castle was a lot more imposing than expected like in the game. It was to the point where she actually felt threatened, since there was no way she had any idea on what was going to happen.

Prison? Already happened back on Earth.

Exile? Living in Engeve didn't seem like it would be a bad idea, plus it would give time to fix the Liger problem.

Execution? ….Escaping would have been the best choice it if wasn't for those Fonon-nullifying shackles that would instantly have her recognized as a runaway criminal.

With a sigh, she steeled herself and walked in.

Everything seemed almost exactly the same, though Aschlyn could see how aged the King looked and how cold and manipulative Duke Fabre could be. Call it intuition or just plain knowledge but this wasn't going to be easy. Next to King Ingobert was his daughter Natalia Luzu Kimlasca-Lanvaldear while Suzanne's presence was devoid of sight in the throne room, most likely due to her weak body. Forced to kneel down, her eyes slid to the ground for a split second before looking back up- a unamused scowl present on her face.

"State your name, trespasser- and why you invaded the Fabre's estate." King Ingobert said as Aschlyn stood, now that the White Knights had returned to their posts back at the manor, though why they were even allowed at the castle was a question in itself. What about the actual Kimlascan soldiers or even one of the Generals? Even if she wasn't a major threat in their eyes without a weapon, anyone else would be able to assassinate the King, Duke, and his daughter with this lack of order.

"Aschlyn Luke Strider. And the reason why I invaded the Fabre's estate wasn't for any reason but an accident. If it were my choice, I would have gladly avoided setting a foot near it, let alone my whole body. After all, what would I gain from hurting myself in the fall and causing trauma to a Servant?" She kept herself from rolling her eyes at Natalia's gasp at her rudeness, preferring to keep this basic and swift. Probably wasn't the best idea, but at the point she was somehow shambling around with bad injuries and magically avoided a concussion. Or the possibility that she got a minor one with the nausea in her stomach. Though by saying that, she managed to singlehandedly piss off Duke Fabre.

"You actually dare to be rude in the presence of the King and Kimlasca as a whole? By just that is considered treason!"

"It would be, if I were from Kimlasca. But I'm not. Just a simple traveller who ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time due to bad Fonon control. Red is the color of the royal family and it's nobles, but I am simply nothing more than a commoner, a Vagrant of Music if you will." Aschlyn announced, though inwardly cringing at the theatrics.

"Even so, to appear in such a flashy statement is dangerous. Our counties are on a fragile arms stance and if Luke were to be injured or even killed would have been catastrophic." King Ingobert...made a very strong point. Even though she wasn't the one in control of being thrown into another world, she sure as hell would have been the start of another war if something happened to Duke Fabre's "Son". It was a sobering thought.

"I understand, your Majesty. That was not my intention to cause harm or a stirrup within Baticul. I am willing to take any punishment you see fit from my transgressions."

He was silent for a minute, listening to the angry whispering of Duke Fabre's and Natalia's staring straight at Aschlyn as if transfixed for some odd reason. Finally after coming to a decision, he spoke.

"If that is how you truly feel, then I sentence you to a month in prison, where you will be tried again after it has passed." That made her look up in shock. From what had happened, that was a light sentence. Yes, it was prison, but that was a lot better than the threat of war or execution. Plus the look on Duke Fabre's face was priceless.

"I understand, your Majesty."

Xx-Determination-xX

Ashi: Well when inspiration comes, take it by the horns I guess. Anyway, welcome to Chapter 2! I meant to say this before, but FRtA is going to be written in third-person POV since switching was so bothersome in FStA and garnered a lot of hate. Now, time to answer Reviews!

DanteShindo: Great to have you back on the team, man! I usually check FF once in a while so I just read your PM that day. I'll need a lot of help with Nathan and refreshing some of the plot, so your assistance is greatly appreciated. Also YES, I'm loving hand-to-hand characters as of late thanks to Tales of Xillia, so the answer is YES.

Guest: As to answer your question, Aschlyn didn't 'pop' into Luke's chamber, but fell out of the sky into the courtyard where everyone could see and onto Luke. Being heavily injured and seeing the 'Duke's Son' covered in blood during a time where war is on the borders, its actually a good thing that they arrested her, even without knowing the full story first. If it was anyone else, Aschlyn would be considered either an Assassin trying to murder Luke, or attempt to kidnap him again. Either one of these could have been the flag to declare war on Malkuth, since Daath could not have been involved as a neutral and heavily religious state. To Kimlasca, Luke is the scion that will bring them prosperity and anyone threatening this would be considered an enemy of Kimlasca and to Lorelei. Which meant there was a chance she could have been executed without anyone testifying if it was serious or Luke had a major injury from the encounter.


End file.
